Can Everton win in the loan market again this season?

Everton’s productive summer on the transfer front has continued this week with the arrival of Christian Atsu on-loan from Chelsea, further bolstering the squad following the permanent signings of Gareth Barry, Romelu Lukaku, Muhamed Besic and Brendan Galloway.

Roberto Martinez was criticised last season for his successful use of the loan market, with some inferring that it was bordering on cheating as they were benefiting from players who were only temporarily part of their squad

These jibes did’’t appear when the likes of Barry and Lukaku initially joined in the summer, it was only when Everton started playing well that the criticism arose.

It was as if the loan rules were only there for signing average bench-warmers, not talented players, and Everton were to blame for using the rules better than others.

The club duly ignored those critics as they recorded a record Premier League points tally before turning Barry and Lukaku’s loan deals permanent this summer – further debunking the myth that their arrival was some sort of short-term cheat.

Barry and Lukaku help form a solid first-team squad of around 22 senior players going into the new campaign but with Europa League football to come in the autumn, Martinez is set to utilise the loan market again before the transfer deadline to add much needed depth.

Ghana international Atsu is set to be the first to arrive and is due on Merseyside for a medical this week. Atsu joined Chelsea last year but has yet to play for them (a familiar tale in their bloated squad), spending last year on-loan at Vitesse.

He has no guarantee of a long-term future at Stamford Bridge either so a successful loan at Goodison could well mean a permanent signing next season – just like Lukaku. Or, if the move doesn’t work out, he can be sent back with little cost to the club.

It is also believed Martinez is seeking to use his other two permitted loans – one definitely a striker – to bring his squad to 25 senior players.

Throw in talented Under-21 stars like John Stones, Luke Garbutt and Ryan Ledson and Everton look to have the squad depth required to cope with the rigours of the Premier League as well as a European campaign – something they haven’t had in a very long time.